Production Year - 2022; this barrel-selected wine is produced only in great years! Grapes - Touriga Nacional (60%), Touriga Franca (30%) and Tinta Cão (10%). Terroir - schist soil, Mediterranean climate (low yearly rainfall and dry, hot summers), grade A classified vineyards at a slightly higher elevation than those we harvest our Port wine grapes from. Winemaking - hand-picked from separate parcels, estate-grown grapes are de-stemmed, crushed and put into stainless steel tanks, where they undergo pre-fermentation maceration for 3 days, followed by temperature-controlled alcoholic fermentation for 7 days, and a final 5 days of post-fermentation maceration. Malolactic fermentation in stainless steel tanks (40%), and new and used, 225 liter (60 gallon), French oak barrels (60%), followed by aging for 18 months in new, 225 liter (60 gallon), French oak barrels before blending and bottling. Annual Production - 2,900 bottles *Unlike our Douro DOC, made every year, we make the Reserva only in great years! Alcohol - 14% Tasting See - ruby with purple highlights. Smell - intense black fruity (blackberry and currants) with elegant French oak vanilla and spice; strong minerality with a delicate orange blossom aroma and great complexity. Sip - with a firm backbone, robust structure, balanced acidity and moderate alcohol; ripe and juicy fruit and tannins with minerality that makes for a long and persistent finish with good precision. Enjoy - now or in 5 to 10 years, cool (16°C/61°F), with gamey meats, hearty stews, juicy steak and powerful cheeses; en fin, something to hold up this wine's chiseled shoulders!
